Here I Come

An opinion piece in the Wall Street Journal (sorry, no link) cites a poll conducted by the University of Maryland on the economic views of people from various countries around the world. In one part of the survey, the following statement was made, and respondents could either agree or disagree: "the free enterprise system and free market economy is the best system on which to base the future of the world." The results were perhaps somewhat surprising: the country with the higest support for this position was China, at 74%! The Phillipines and the US were next, with 73% and 71% support, respectively. Only half of French citizens supported this viewpoint.

Despite their oppresive government, the Chinese clearly seem to have their eyes looking in the right direction to continue their strong economic growth. This market is going to be huge, and getting into it as soon as possible is essential for investors and entrepreneurs. Personally, I don't know how you could argue with the logic of this statement. I mean, what are the other alternatives that might do a better job? Look at the history of the 20th century, and it's pretty clear that hitching your horse to capitalism is a great idea. The fact that the Chinese are seeing this reality is outstanding, and it makes me even more excited for my upcoming trip to China in March. I'm very curious to see how capitalism and globalization are becoming integrated in China (especially in areas outside of the major cities).

Via EconLog.